Frequently asked questions
Adelaide's coastline is one connected system but some of our beaches can experience significant erosion.
Parts of the southern and central beaches along Adelaide’s metropolitan coastline can experience significant sand loss and erosion of sand dunes, particularly over the winter months.
The sand along Adelaide’s coast is naturally moved northward by the wind and waves. This causes sand to build up on our northern beaches, and sand loss and erosion along parts of our central and southern beaches. The State Government manages the metropolitan coastline to protect the foreshore and coastal development from storms while allowing the community to enjoy sandy beaches.
Beach operations to move sand have occurred across the metropolitan beach system for nearly 50 years.
Dredging is a regulated activity that requires approval from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and is undertaken in accordance with licence conditions and environmental management requirements.
How are Adelaide beaches being protected?
Adelaide’s beaches are one of South Australia’s most important environmental, recreational and tourism assets.
The State Government is investing $190 million over 20 years in a long-term beach replenishment program to protect and restore Adelaide’s coast from West Beach to North Haven by moving sand from where it naturally builds up to where it is needed.
The dredging program will help improve the resilience of Adelaide’s coastline to storms and sea-level rise, maintaining beach width, protecting coastal infrastructure, and ensuring future generations can continue to enjoy the coast.
You can learn more about the long-term program here.
What is the 2026 dredging operation?
The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has approved a licence for dredging operations to proceed in 2026. All dredging operations will be undertaken in accordance with the licence conditions, including an approved Dredge Management Plan.
The operation will commence in September 2026 and forms part of Adelaide's long-term beach replenishment program.
Up to 90,000 cubic metres of sand will be collected from a nearshore area just south of North Haven Marina breakwater and placed at West Beach and Henley Beach South.
Why was dredging chosen?
The Adelaide Beach Management Review considered a range of options for managing Adelaide's beaches and found dredging provided the best balance of environmental care, cost, flexibility, safety and community outcomes.
Extensive community consultation was undertaken as part of the Adelaide Beach Management Review, with dredging identified as the most supported long-term option through public feedback and submissions.
Dredging also provides greater flexibility than fixed infrastructure because sand can be collected and placed at different locations as coastal conditions change over time. The review found extended pipelines would be the most expensive and least flexible option, while trucking was ruled out as a long-term solution because it would significantly affect community access to and enjoyment of Adelaide’s beaches, as well as generate traffic, noise and other environmental impacts.
How will sand be delivered to West Beach and Henley Beach South?
The Dredge Management Plan submitted to the EPA outlines the methods to be used during the 2026 dredging operations.
Up to 90,000 cubic metres of clean sand that has been identified as suitable for beach nourishment will be collected by backhoe dredge from the nearshore area just south of North Haven Marina breakwater and transported by split hopper barges.
The split hopper barges will be used to place sand directly on the seabed at West Beach and Henley Beach South.
The proposal also includes an option where the sand is then moved closer to the shoreline by a cutter suction dredge and pipeline diffuser. This aspect of the method referred to as rehandling allows sand to be moved closer to the shoreline where direct placement by barge is restricted by water depth. Rehandling will only be undertaken if weather permits.
How do we know dredging will work?
A dredging trial was conducted in October and November 2024 to assess whether dredging could be used effectively and safely for beach nourishment along Adelaide’s coastline.
The trial demonstrated that dredging is a feasible method for collecting and placing sand where it is needed. Monitoring undertaken during the trial found water quality remained within EPA trigger and alarm thresholds throughout operations. Monitoring also identified no direct impacts to seagrass attributable to dredging or sand placement activities.
Information gathered through the trial has informed the design, operational planning and environmental management measures for the 2026 dredging program.
How will dredging be regulated?
All dredging activities will be regulated by the EPA and undertaken in accordance with an approved Dredge Management Plan.
The EPA remains the independent environmental regulator throughout the project and has the authority to enforce licence conditions, require operational modifications and take regulatory action where necessary.
What environmental safeguards are in place?
The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) is the independent regulator responsible for ensuring dredging activities comply with South Australia's environmental laws and licence conditions.
As a condition of the dredging licence, the project must implement a range of environmental management and monitoring plans, including:
- A Water Quality Monitoring Plan
- A Seagrass Monitoring Plan
- A Noise Monitoring Plan
These plans are contained within the Dredge Management Plan and set out how dredging activities will be managed and monitored to protect water quality, marine habitats, public health and local communities. They include environmental performance criteria, monitoring requirements and management measures that must be followed throughout the dredging program.
Monitoring results are reviewed against licence requirements, and the EPA has regulatory powers to oversee compliance and require corrective action if necessary.
What happens if monitoring identifies an issue?
Environmental monitoring will be assessed against EPA-approved trigger values.
If trigger levels are reached, investigations and management responses will be implemented. Depending on the circumstances, dredging activities may be modified, paused or stopped until environmental conditions return to acceptable levels or approval to recommence is provided by the EPA.
Will dredging affect seagrass?
Protecting seagrass is a key consideration of the project.
Results from the 2024 dredging trial found no direct impacts to seagrass attributable to dredging or sand placement activities.
A detailed Seagrass Monitoring Plan will assess seagrass condition before and after dredging and establish robust data to detect any changes over time.
Findings from ongoing environmental monitoring, including seagrass monitoring, will help inform a review of the long-term dredging program after five years to ensure it continues to deliver the best outcomes for Adelaide’s beaches.
Is dredging linked to the harmful algal bloom?
There is no established link between dredging activities and the harmful algal bloom.
The dredging program includes safeguards and monitoring measures designed to identify and manage potential environmental impacts. Environmental conditions will continue to be assessed throughout the program in accordance with EPA licence requirements and environmental management plans.
DEW is also working with the Office of Algal Bloom Response to monitor the presence of microalgal species, including Karenia species, in areas where dredging operations are occurring. Algal cell counts will be undertaken twice a week at eight monitoring sites throughout dredging operations.
Will beaches remain open during dredging?
Beaches will remain open during operations.
Beachgoers may see dredging vessels and support equipment operating offshore and there may be short-term impacts on some on-water activities during sand collection and placement. DEW will work closely with clubs, businesses, community groups and councils to minimise disruption wherever possible.
What consultation has there been?
Extensive community consultation was undertaken through the Adelaide Beach Management Review, with dredging identified as the most supported long-term option through public feedback, submissions and panel hearings.
As part of this engagement process, feedback from stakeholder groups was provided to the State Government for consideration before decisions were made on the long-term replenishment program.
The application to conduct dredging operations in 2026 was open for community consultation by the EPA from 10-24 July.
DEW will continue to provide information to the community and undertake engagement activities at appropriate stages of the sand replenishment program, including where required through regulatory assessment and approval processes.
What happens after 2026?
The 2026 dredging operation will help prepare for implementation of Adelaide's long-term beach replenishment program from 2027. It will build on information gained through the 2024 dredging trial and support the transition to long-term sand restoration and replenishment activities along Adelaide's coastline.
The Government has also committed to a review of the dredging program after five years. Monitoring data, technical investigations and operational experience will be used to assess outcomes and inform future beach management decisions.
What research has been undertaken?
A number of scientific, environmental, engineering and feasibility investigations were undertaken as part of the Adelaide Beach Management Review (ABMR) and the 2024 operational dredging trial. These reports, together with an independent technical peer review, informed the Government's assessment of long-term beach management options for Adelaide's metropolitan coastline. The reports cover coastal processes, environmental monitoring, operational feasibility and the comparative assessment of different sand management methods.
| Category | Report | Objective |
| High-level Summary | Adelaide Beach Management Review Implementation (ABMRI) - Summary Report | A report summarising the Adelaide Beach Management Review implementation. |
| Adelaide Beach Management Review | Adelaide Beach Management Review Independent Advisory Panel - Adelaide Beach Management Scientific Rev | To undertake a desktop review of sand management options for Adelaide’s metropolitan beaches and identify priority next steps. |
| Investigations supporting the review of the Dredge Trial | ABMRI Dredge Trial – Water Quality Monitoring Report | To monitor and assess water quality during the dredging trial and evaluate compliance with approved environmental trigger limits. |
| ABMRI Dredge Trial – Report on Operational and Environmental Feasibility of Dredging | To assess the operational and environmental feasibility of dredging to deliver sand nearshore at West Beach through a targeted trial. | |
| ABMRI Dredge Trial – Marine Mammal Observations | To independently observe and document marine mammal presence and behaviour during dredging operations at North Haven. | |
| ABMRI Dredge Trial – Noise Monitoring Report | To measure and assess noise emissions from dredging activities during the trial. | |
| ABMRI Dredge Trial - Coastal Monitoring Report | To provide a year-long assessment of how effective the sand placement during the trial has performed from a coastal management perspective. | |
| Dredging feasibility | Sand Management Using Dredgers – Sand Sourcing and Other Feasibility Assessments Report - ABMRI | To assess the long-term feasibility of using dredgers for restoring and recycling sand on Adelaide’s northern metropolitan beaches, including identifying suitable sand sources. |
| Pipeline feasibility | Sand Pumping System Feasibility Assessment Report | To assess the feasibility of the existing and proposed sand pumping system to support long-term sand recycling to West Beach. |
| Sand carting by truck feasibility | ABMRI -Recycling of Sand By Truck in the Northern Management Area Report | To document the program of work that would be required to deliver a long-term recycling program between the northern beaches. |
| Technical Peer Review | Adelaide Beach Management Review Implementation Project – Technical Peer Review | To independently assess the technical accuracy and robustness od all the technical investigations undertaken to support the Adelaide Beach Management Review recommendations. |
All Adelaide Beach Management Review reports and findings are available on the Adelaide Beach Management Review webpage.
Why aren't structures like groynes built to try to reduce the natural drift of sand northward? What other alternatives have been looked at?
Fixed structures are very expensive to build and still require large volumes of nourishment sand to be added to “pre-fill” the area following construction. This pre-filling with sand is essential otherwise the coast to the north of each structure would erode. Depending on the size of the structure, often beaches to the north of the structure will require on-going maintenance such as beach replenishment to address this ‘down-drift-erosion effect.
In addition, the experience with existing structures on the Adelaide coast and elsewhere in South Australia is that they trap large quantities of beach-cast seagrass or algae (seaweed) which can have an impact on the usability of the beaches and increase management costs.
When factoring in these aspects, the sustainable approach to managing our beaches involves recycling sand from areas where sand builds up to areas of loss. This means the protection of Adelaide’s beaches can be achieved without negative impacts from structures, which would interrupt amenity and recreational use along our sandy beaches.
Options involving the construction of hard engineering structures to re-orientate the West Beach shoreline were considered by DHI and included offshore breakwaters and headland control structures. A range of risks and disadvantages were identified with these options: they are costly to install, require large quantities of sand, trap seagrass wrack, can be a safety hazard, are visually unappealing, interrupt recreational beach use and can cause the coast on the northern side of the structure to become starved of sand.
Why is sand under the surface of the beach grey or black in colour?
The sand collected from Adelaide’s beaches is sometimes coloured grey to black because of the naturally decomposing seagrass content. This is particularly noticeable if you dig below the surface of the beach in areas where seagrass wrack accumulates. This quickly dries and turns white/yellow after being exposed to the sun, wind and rain.
What is being done to help beaches outside of Adelaide?
Local councils play a critical role in protecting regional assets from coastal hazards and maintaining coastal areas for all South Australians and tourists.
Coast Protection grants are available for projects that help to sustain, restore and protect our precious coastal resources via two annual grant programs. Learn more.
